Lawmakers back President Tinubu’s external borrowing plan to fund the 2025 budget, refinance debt, and support infrastructure via the debut sovereign Sukuk.
Nigeria’s Senate has approved a $2.847 billion borrowing request from President Bola Tinubu, giving the green light to fresh external financing aimed at narrowing the country’s 2025 budget deficit and refinancing maturing debt.
The approval, granted on Wednesday October 29, 2025, includes a $2.347 billion loan from the international capital market to partially fund the 2025 national budget. In addition, lawmakers endorsed a $500 million debut Sovereign Sukuk, a Sharia-compliant financial instrument, targeted at accelerating key infrastructure projects across the country.
The decision follows the adoption of a report by the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, chaired by Senator Wamakko Magatarkada Aliyu. The report reviewed President Tinubu’s request, titled “New External Borrowing and Refinancing,” which was originally submitted to the National Assembly on October 8, 2025.
Presenting the findings, Senator Wamakko emphasized that the borrowing was crucial to maintaining economic stability and ensuring that vital national projects remained on track under the 2025 fiscal framework.
“The loans are intended to support key national priorities without jeopardizing Nigeria’s credit standing in the global financial system,” Wamakko said. He added that the financing would help the federal government meet its obligations without disrupting ongoing programs.
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The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance echoed the sentiment, stressing the importance of the borrowing to ensure full implementation of the 2025 Appropriation Bill. “It is very necessary that we give approval to this request so that the 2025 appropriation will be given the necessary funding,” he stated during the plenary.
Supporting the motion, Senator Adetokunbo Abiru, who heads the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions, clarified that the loan request was part of the government’s long-term fiscal strategy. He assured that the move would not worsen the country’s debt profile, as it had already been factored into the 2025 budget planning.
Nigeria has increasingly turned to sovereign bonds and multilateral financing to plug budget shortfalls and service debt, amid growing public debt and fiscal pressures. The latest approval underscores President Tinubu’s strategy to balance domestic spending priorities with external financial obligations.
With this development, the executive arm now has legislative backing to proceed with the loan negotiations, as the government seeks to unlock funds crucial to delivering its fiscal agenda for the 2025 financial year.